The present invention relates to a photographic camera of the type wherein a film magazine containing a roll of 35 mm strip film is inserted axially into a film loading chamber that opens at the bottom of the camera and, more particularly, to a camera having an improved door construction wherein a film loading door slidably mounted on and rectilinearly movable along the bottom for opening and closing the film loading chamber and a back door pivotably mounted on the back of the camera for opening and closing a guideway into which a film leader previously drawn out of the magazine is inserted, cooperate with each other.
In conventional still cameras for use with magazines containing a roll of 35 mm strip film, before the camera is loaded, a back door is fully opened. A magazine in a correct position is inserted into a film loading chamber of the camera and then a film leader previously drawn out of the magazine is wound around a take-up spool in a film take-up chamber The back door is closed to complete the film loading. This film loading procedure is complicated and require troublesome operations. For this reason, inexperienced users cannot perform film loading satisfactorily, with the result that in that no picture is taken because of the failure to wind the film.
To eliminate the foregoing disadvantages, there have recently been proposed cameras of the type wherein a magazine is inserted or dropped axially into a film loading chamber that opens at the bottom of the camera for film loading. Such a camera is disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,324,476. In such a camera, there is provided a door apparatus comprising a flap-like back door pivotably mounted on the back of the camera and a flap-like bottom door pivotably mounted on the back door for opening and closing the bottom of the camera. In the camera, however, the open film loading door, which swings through an angle of about 90.degree., not only makes the camera cumbersome but also provides too large an opening at the bottom, thereby allowing dust and other foreign particles to enter the camera.
On the other hand, there have been proposed cameras using magazines containing a rool of 35 mm strip film adapted automatically to wind a film leader around a film take-up spool without inserting the loading end of the film leader into its slot. Such a camera is disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,303,325, and has an improved film take-up spool which is provided with a film capturing projection that engages within an aperture in the film leader.
In the foregoing easy loading cameras, in order to make the film loading operation easier, an improved apparatus, which is adapted automatically to advance the film leader to the film take-up spool merely by closing a back door after insertion of the film magazine into the film loading chamber, has been proposed in Japanese Utility Model No. 57-74429, which has been laid open to the public. This type of camera, however, has an intricate driving mechanism for a film advancing roller which comprises a cylindrical surface engageable with the film leader and a vent surface and which is adapted to be stopped at a position where the vent surface is opposite a film passageway after having advanced the film leader. Such intricate mechanism results in high-priced cameras.